For Ezra had prepared his heart to study the Word of the LORD, and to practice it, and to teach His statutes in Israel. Ezra 7:10

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Praying for our leaders

I have several Christian friends that are left of center.
Whenever I speak against the actions of our current President, they love to
trot out Romans 13:1-7. You know, the verses talking about how God ordained
government and has placed every ruler over us. That we should render the taxes,
respect and honor due unto them. I do not dispute, disagree or minimize these
verses. I will, however, point out the hypocrisy of the same people who protect
this POTUS but spent the previous 8 years lambasting the last one…

So then, how do we subject ourselves to an administration
that is forcing acceptance of homosexuality in all aspects of life, as well as
forcing individuals, organizations and business owners to pay for abortions in
violation of their own Scripturally based beliefs?

We have other Scriptural guidance on the issue. Both Titus 3
and 1 Timothy 2 tell us to pray for our leaders. Fortunately, those passages
not only tell us TO pray for our leaders, they tell us WHY to pray for them.
Paul tells Timothy to pray for them that they might be saved and come to the
knowledge of the Truth! He also tells Titus that reason, but also adds that we
should remember that WE were once lost, disobedient fools ourselves.

Daniel is the quintessential example of a man of God living
in an ungodly land. He gave respect and honor to his king, and in Daniel 6:21
even blesses the king with the greeting “O king, live forever!” This was after
the king had thrown Daniel in the lion’s den for praying to anything other than
the king.

Again, how do we pray for an ungodly leader? I believe that
the answer to that question lies in the words of a king. David writes in Psalm
141:5 that he prays against the DEEDS of the wicked.

I submit that we are charged, required and expected to pray
for our leaders, legislators and judges. We are to pray that they will gain
knowledge of the Truth. My personal phrase that I tend to use is that they “not
be able to take a step without tripping over godly counsel”. But we are also to
pray against their deeds of evil, against the powers of this world oppressing
the people of God.

About Me

I'm in my early 40s and finally putting my "yes" on the table to a ministry call that God placed on my heart almost a decade ago. I've been married to my loving bride Lou Ann for almost 22 years. We have four children: Jessica, Leslie, Patrick and Abigail. Jessica has blessed us with two wonderful grandchildren, Jasmine and Adam.
I'm currently a member at Longview Heights Baptist in Olive Branch MS. I teach a men's Bible study class, play bass in the praise band on Sunday nights, and serve as the director of our men's ministry.
I've worked for the past 20 years in industrial maintenance and project management, but I am getting my ducks in a row so that I can complete my education to pursue vocational ministry.